1936 TO PRESENT
(continued)
.
.
| A
thylacine at the Hobart Zoo (Beaumaris site), circa 1910, at about which
time it first began exhibiting this species. The zoo was initially
known as the Beaumaris Zoo, and was founded by Mary G. Roberts in
1895. Originally located at Mrs. Roberts's private residence, operation
the zoo was transferred to the Hobart City Council upon her death in 1921,
and the facility was moved to a new site (the Domain site). |
|
Over the years, many members of the public have claimed to have witnessed
a thylacine. On 11 February 1974, a Sydney newspaper, the Sun,
published an old photograph of a thylacine, and a correspondent wrote:
"While on a tourist bus in 1969, traveling over the snow fields of the
Prince William Ranges, two passengers and I observed a small animal near
an old logging camp. It appeared to be a greyhound in the puppy stage.
It was running along a fence close to the road. It was brown and
the stripes as marked as those shown in 'The Sun'." (Fisher 1974). |
.
| One
of a number of thylacine photos taken by Harry Burrell at the Hobart Zoo
(Beaumaris site) sometime prior to 1921. Burrell was a naturalist
who is perhaps best known for his research on the platypus. This
copy of the image has been heavily cropped, and the tail cosmetically retouched
to remove a shadow (compare to the
original). |
|
On the night of 19 August
1977, Tom Banfield and John Wilson, two policemen, reported to have seen
a dog-like animal crossing the road in front of their vehicle near Derby.
Dark, ring-like markings were present on the tail, but no distinctive marks
were visible on its back (Anon. 1977b, Strachan 1977).
| Throughout
the 1980s, 1990s, and to the present day, claims of thylacine sightings
(of varying quality and credibility) have continued to surface. Additional
castings of possible thylacine tracks have also been brought forward.
A small number of photographs
which may possibly be of thylacines have also been taken over the past
25 years. While some such track casts and images are obviously hoaxes,
or are too indistinct to make a conclusive identification, a percentage
of them do possess particular qualities which are highly suggestive of
being genuine.
In recent times, of note among the more extensive private field studies
that have been conducted in search of the thylacine are those of long-time
enthusiast Col Bailey of the Tasmanian Tiger Research & Data Centre,
as well as Tigerman (literary pseudonym), who began searching in
1998. Bailey,
who has been involved in thylacine investigations for over thirty years,
has written numerous articles about his personal field experiences and
various other thylacine-related matters. Tigerman is the author
of a comprehensive online
publication which describes the results of his own field research. |
.
| A
plaster cast of a possible thylacine hind track taken in 2003 by Tigerman,
author of the online publication Magnificent Survivor
- Continued Existence of the Tasmanian Tiger. The total length
of the cast is 18 cm (7 in.). Compare it to illustrations
of the thylacine's hind
foot (pes) drawn by R. Pocock in 1926. |
|
|
